Curry was very talented, skilled, and technically correct, perhaps even more fundamentally sound than Leonard. But he didn't have the toughness or well roundedness to handle someone like SRL. Leonard would have found a way to beat Curry and possibly stop him.
Yeah love Curry and would like to believe he does better here than he probably does, but he stays a step behind Leonard at every turn. I'd love to see that left hook land on Ray's chin though...
Saccharin Ray wanted no part of THE LONE STAR COBRA The snake in the grass stabbed Don in the back with the Hagler fight then robbed Marvin
I was around when all this happened were you ? Leonard was supposed to be retired and working as Don's advisor. Instead he stabbed him in the back. Leonard;s name was **** around Fort Worth TEXas he never came back
I don't see it that way. The only thing which might have happened is Ray was not sure he wanted to fight Marvin (had this happened before he decided to fight him), and he didn't tell Donald that he was thinking about it. When was this purported meeting or meetings? Donald might have told the whole world had he known what Ray was planning, so why risk it if the Mugabi fight had not happened yet, which really influenced Ray when he saw Marvin looking older and rusty. Who do you think Marvin picks to fight if he had a choice in 1986? The guy he was thinking about fighting for 5 years (Ray) or Curry who was moving up in weight? Leonard everytime. I don't get the backstabbing part. Ray could have told Donald to move up. that means Ray could not have fought Marvin or come out in May of 1986? Donald would have still had to get acclimated, and he fought McCallum in July 1987, so in reality how would telling Donald one thing or another change Ray or Donald fighting Marvin first. Ray was not too honest I admit, and he handpicked Marvin at the right time, but Donald being upset that Ray backstabbed him was a bit made up. The fact is after Mike knocked out Donald on the HBO broadcast Ray said something like "this speaks for itself". I might have the words wrong on that, but he was saying Donald losing to Mike probably means his advice to not move up was good advice.
Donald was a very good fighter. Very good and it would have been a tactical fight very similar to the early rounds with Hearns in 1981, but I think Ray's intelligence and better concentration wins him the fight. He finds a way to hurt Donald and stop him. Everything Ray did was legal and legit. How was Hagler robbed. We had a thread on here a week or two back. It was a close fight. Fact is Marvin could have done better coming out lefty and getting momentum.
Prime Curry had the speed and skill set to trouble Leonard early in this hypothetical fight between the two. But as was shown against light punching Hwang, who dropped him and later by multiple fighters that stopped him his chin wasn't close to great. Leonard would adjust to Curry's speed by setting his feet and countering hard to Curry's body, slowly breaking him down, somewhere along the line one of those hard left hook's to Curry's body would double into a hard left hook to his jaw,,,,,,, Goodnight Donald Curry somewhere within 8-9rds prime vs prime.
I think it's fairly competitive, in the early going. But, I can envisage Leonard starting to runaway with it, after the early stanzas - a Leonard stoppage win is not unthinkable, either. My only caveat is that Curry would remain a threat, until the end. He carried above-average power, in my opinion.
